Inquiries on missing Pinoys, Fil-Ams in Maui, Hawaii wildfires rising —PH Consulate ---By DAVE LLAVANES JR.

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The Philippine Consulate General in Honolulu on Monday said it is receiving a rising number of calls and emails inquiring about the status of Filipinos and Filipino-Americans missing after wildfires caused devastation on Maui Island in Hawaii. "Queries received by the Consulate requesting assistance in locating missing individuals and family members have increased," Consul General Emilio Hernandez told GMA Integrated News. "We continue to be in touch with local authorities in this regard and advise those who send such queries to access the following links for more information: Per the ARC's advice, if one needs assistance locating a missing loved one due to the current disaster, they should call 1-800 RED CROSS (1-800-733-2767) and select Option 4. Follow the voice prompts for 'Hawaii Wildfires.'" Up to this point, the Consulate is still facing challenges in obtaining an accurate list of missing Filipinos and Filipino-American individuals. The Consulate's priority is to obtain an accurate list of missing Filipino immigrants and Filipino-American dual citizens who have been reported missing. Fernandez however said they understand that local authorities in Maui are currently focused on search and recovery and restoring normalcy in Lahaina. "Government officials at the local, state, and even federal level are on the ground focusing on relief and recovery. We trust that they are doing their utmost best and fastest to address requests for assistance in locating missing persons and understand that the work at hand will not be easy due to the wide area that they need to cover (over 2,000 properties have been reported destroyed) and the time and processes to properly identify persons who are eventually found," Fernandez said. Fernandez also encouraged the relatives of missing Filipinos to provide DNA samples to expedite the process of identifying the deceased found at Ground Zero. “Local authorities requested submission of DNA samples in order to facilitate and expedite the identification of persons reported missing in the incident. DNA sample submission is encouraged, if possible," he said. On Sunday, the death toll due to the wildfires on Maui Island reached 96. The wildfires which started Tuesday last week destroyed much of the historic resort town of Lahaina. According to the Department of Foreign Affairs (DFA), there are 200,000 pure Filipinos living in Hawaii. Sixty percent of them are American citizens. —KG, GMA Integrated News

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

PCG: China’s bullying in West Philippine Sea undermines international law --- Ghio Ong - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — Letting China sustain its aggression in the West Philippine Sea would make other countries doubt the strength of international law currently being asserted by the Philippines, Commodore Jay Tarriela of the Philippine Coast Guard (PCG) said. “Allowing China to blatantly disregard the established rules-based order threatens the very foundation that we all depend on,” he wrote in a post on X last Tuesday. He added, “If we permit this, countries worldwide may forget why this order was created in the first place. Nations could begin to doubt the significance of adhering to international law if powerful bullies can easily violate it.” Tarriela also said defiance of other countries to a rules-based order would result in the prevalence of cruelty. He wrote, “This could lead us back to a time when might makes right, undermining the global structures that keep human greed, savagery and barbarism in check. Such a scenario would not only invite challenges from aggressive ...
Read more

China ships maintain presence in key West Philippine Sea areas --- Michael Punongbayan - The Philippine Star

STAR / Michael Varcas MANILA, Philippines — While Chinese vessels in the West Philippine Sea (WPS) have decreased in number, they have maintained a presence in three key land features where naval and coast guard ships have intensified operations in the past seven days, according to the Philippine Navy. Latest monitoring by the Philippine Navy showed armed ships of the People’s Liberation Army Navy (PLAN) maintaining a menacing presence around the grounded BRP Sierra Madre in Ayungin Shoal, Panatag Shoal and Escoda Shoal. According to the Philippine Navy, there are 17 Chinese military vessels and 28 China Coast Guard (CCG) boats spotted inside the country’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ) between Sept. 23 and 30, or one vessel more than in the previous week Sept.17-23. Five of the warships were seen roaming around the vicinity of Escoda Shoal, along with 10 CCG vessels and 12 maritime militia vessels (MMVs). There are also two PLAN ships in Ayungin Shoal as well as 10 CCG boats and 12...
Read more

Social media seen as cause of rising intermarriages --- Helen Flores - The Philippine Star

MANILA, Philippines — The Commission on Filipinos Overseas (CFO) sees social media as the main reason for the rising number of Filipinos marrying or becoming partners of foreign nationals. In 2022, the CFO recorded 6,854 marriages or partnerships with foreign nationals, a 40.1 percent increase from the 4,891 “intermarriages” recorded in 2021. “First of all, what we see in the increase in the marriage rate of Filipinos or Filipinos with foreign partners is because of social media, (that) is number one; matchings; letters, introduction of their friends,” CFO chairperson Romulo Arugay said at the Bagong Pilipinas Ngayon public briefing yesterday. Arugay said the agency has been registering a high number of intermarriages since 2007, but the figures went down during the COVID-19 pandemic. From over 6,500 Filipinos who married foreign nationals, only 600 are men, he said. Most of them are married to Americans, Japanese, Germans, Canadians and Australians, Arugay said. Arugay warned Fi...
Read more